Structure, size and elections of Senate/House (Debating)

[Fmr. Pres. Duke]

Abstain

[Prince of Salem]

Aye

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

By a vote of 10 AYES, 0 NAYS, 5 Abstentions, and with two votes invalid and eight members not voting, this amendment has been ADOPTED.

The text for this Article is now as follows:

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[windjammer]

I like the idea of president of congress.
Although I would like to be defined in the constitution as well.

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

I like the idea of president of congress.
Although I would like to be defined in the constitution as well.

I think it would be best to leave the duties of Congressional officers to Congress itself. That way, tweaks to the legislative process can be accomplished quickly, rather than through the drawn-out process for amending the Constitution.

On another note, I've been thinking about the limitations on simultaneous officeholding. I'm thinking something along these lines:

- No person may hold the office of President or Supreme Court Justice simultaneously with any other office
- No member of Congress may serve as a member of both houses simultaneously
- No member of Congress may simultaneously serve as VP
- No Representative may serve simultaneously as Senator or as a Governor
- No Senator may serve simultaneously as a Representative or as a member of a Regional government
- Members of Congress CAN serve as cabinet secretaries, as can the VP
- Representatives CAN serve simultaneously as members of their Regional legislature/judiciary

The last measure is intended to boost interest in serving in the House: based on the structure of that branch, the workload per Representative should be lighter, so it shouldn't be a problem for a member of the House to serve simultaneously in the Regional legislature/judiciary. I exempted the Senate from this provision because potentially the Regional legislatures might elect the Senate and because the workload for that body would be presumably greater.

I'd be interested to hear any thoughts y'all might have on the matter.

[Clark Kent]

So nine members of the House, and two Senators per region...doesn't that seem like a lot? Even if we cut it down to three or four regions, that's still at least 15 Congressmen, compared to the 10 Senators we have now. Maybe keep one regional Senator, and have, say, seven members of the House?

[NeverAgain]

So nine members of the House, and two Senators per region...doesn't that seem like a lot? Even if we cut it down to three or four regions, that's still at least 15 Congressmen, compared to the 10 Senators we have now. Maybe keep one regional Senator, and have, say, seven members of the House?

Or one regional Senator and then two House members per region. Leaving there to be 9 legislators for the 3 regions.

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

So nine members of the House, and two Senators per region...doesn't that seem like a lot?

Be that as it may, both of the questions you raised have already been answered by a democratic vote of this chamber: for good or ill (and I am inclined to say the former), the House of Representatives shall consist of nine members and the national map of three Regions. Those issues are no longer on the table for further debate. You are free to introduce an amendment limiting each Region to one Senator, but I would advise against it: a three-member Senate would be too small to appropriately represent the will of the electorate and would be disproportionately more influential than the House (as each Senator would be, in effect, the equivalent of three Representatives).

I don't discount the danger of governmental bloating, however: this is why I suggested allowing citizens to serve as members of the House and as Regional legislators simultaneously. Keep in mind that we are already reducing the number of offices nationally as a result of consolidation: under the current plan, there would be 40 Regional and federal offices, as opposed to 53 currently.

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

So nine members of the House, and two Senators per region...doesn't that seem like a lot? Even if we cut it down to three or four regions, that's still at least 15 Congressmen, compared to the 10 Senators we have now. Maybe keep one regional Senator, and have, say, seven members of the House?

Or one regional Senator and then two House members per region. Leaving there to be 9 legislators for the 3 regions.

Again, as I stated above, we have already held principle votes on the size and structure of the House of Representatives. The democratically-expressed will of the Convention is for the House to consist of 9 members elected At-Large by the national electorate. We are not re-litigating these issues.

[NeverAgain]

So nine members of the House, and two Senators per region...doesn't that seem like a lot? Even if we cut it down to three or four regions, that's still at least 15 Congressmen, compared to the 10 Senators we have now. Maybe keep one regional Senator, and have, say, seven members of the House?

Or one regional Senator and then two House members per region. Leaving there to be 9 legislators for the 3 regions.

Again, as I stated above, we have already held principle votes on the size and structure of the House of Representatives. The democratically-expressed will of the Convention is for the House to consist of 9 members elected At-Large by the national electorate. We are not re-litigating these issues.

My apologies, I didn't see that before responding.

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

So nine members of the House, and two Senators per region...doesn't that seem like a lot? Even if we cut it down to three or four regions, that's still at least 15 Congressmen, compared to the 10 Senators we have now. Maybe keep one regional Senator, and have, say, seven members of the House?

Or one regional Senator and then two House members per region. Leaving there to be 9 legislators for the 3 regions.

Again, as I stated above, we have already held principle votes on the size and structure of the House of Representatives. The democratically-expressed will of the Convention is for the House to consist of 9 members elected At-Large by the national electorate. We are not re-litigating these issues.

My apologies, I didn't see that before responding.

No worries - just so long as we're on the same page.

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

Alright, folks, lets get this show on the road! The current text of this Article, as of the adoption of the most recent motion, can be read here. I ask that every delegate take a moment to read through this text and wrack their brains for any last-minute alterations or additions that might need to be made. If there is no further debate, I WILL CALL A FINAL VOTE ON THIS ARTICLE IN 48 HOURS TIME. If you have ANY questions or concerns about this Article, I ask that you send me a PM or post them in this thread sometime the next two days; otherwise, I will assume that everything is perfect and will go ahead with the final vote.

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

I motion for a final vote on this Article. Delegates have 24 hours to object.

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

A final vote is now open on this Article. Please vote AYE, NAY, or Abstain. Voting will last 48 hours or until all delegates have voted.

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[NeverAgain]

Aye!

[VPH]

aye

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

AYE!

[Adam Griffin]

Aye

[tmthforu94]

Aye

[Senator Cris]

AYE!

[Classic Conservative]

AYE

[Former Lincoln Assemblyman & Lt. Gov. RGN]

AYE

[Clyde1998]

Aye

[Associate Justice PiT]

     Aye

[ilikeverin]

Yup